Rep. Adam Schiff asks Metrolink to assess yard's health risks

A Metrolink train crosses Grandview Ave. in Glendale last year just north of where Rep. Adam Schiff held his news conference on Thursday.

A Metrolink train crosses Grandview Ave. in Glendale last year just north of where Rep. Adam Schiff held his news conference on Thursday. (Roger Wilson/Staff photographer)

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) on Thursday called on Metrolink to assess the health risks of air pollution on neighborhoods surrounding the commuter railroad's central maintenance yard north of downtown Los Angeles.

At a news conference, Schiff made the request on behalf of residents and community groups that have long been concerned about diesel exhaust coming from the commuter system's locomotives when they are serviced.

Diesel emissions have been linked to cancer, asthma and other respiratory illnesses, especially in neighborhoods near major transportation corridors that are heavily traveled by trains and trucks.

"We need to give the communities the answers they deserve," said Schiff, who has been requesting a study for about a year. "A health risk assessment needs to be done now. I call on Metrolink for what I hope will be the final time."